The Excited Grandmaster

"Indeed, your disciple is truly exceptional!" Flender acknowledged.

"However..." Flender's expression shifted slightly as he thought of Su Xing, the one who had severely injured Dai Mubai.

"However, what?" Yu Xiaogang (Grandmaster) looked at Flender curiously, not understanding why Flender was giving him that look.

"Among the students who participated in the entrance exam that day, there was a boy named Su Xing, and he's quite something!" Flender said.

"Su Xing? That name sounds familiar," Yu Xiaogang furrowed his brow upon hearing it.

"Of course, that boy wanted to take you as his teacher back then, but you refused!" Flender teased. "Xiaogang, even you can misjudge sometimes. That boy is no worse than your disciple, Tang San!"

"The boy from back then..." Yu Xiaogang immediately remembered. "He only had innate soul power of level three when he awakened his martial spirit. I wonder if he's even reached level 20 by now. How could he compare to Tang San?" Yu Xiaogang said, surprised.

"What? His innate soul power was really only level three?" Flender was shocked. He hadn't believed it when Tang San mentioned it a few days ago. "Are you sure, Xiaogang? That boy has already broken through to level 27 and is now a great soul master!"

Yu Xiaogang was stunned upon hearing this, which explained why Flender thought so highly of Su Xing.

"Impossible! I personally tested him when he awakened his martial spirit—his innate soul power was only level three!" Yu Xiaogang shook his head, confident he hadn't misjudged.

"Then how did he advance so quickly? And he even detonated his own spirit rings! Do you think his rapid cultivation is related to that?" Flender remained curious about Su Xing's situation.

"What? He detonated his spirit rings? Why would he do that?" Yu Xiaogang was completely dumbfounded. He had never heard of anyone willingly blowing up their own spirit rings!

"Where is Su Xing now?" Yu Xiaogang asked, now filled with curiosity about Su Xing.

"Unfortunately, due to certain reasons, he didn't join Shrek Academy and has already left," Flender said with a hint of regret.

"He's already gone?" Yu Xiaogang felt equally disappointed. "If I had known, I would have come earlier. Six years ago, he wanted to be my disciple. If he had known I would be teaching at Shrek, he probably wouldn't have left!"

Yu Xiaogang still thought of Su Xing as the same boy who had wanted to apprentice under him years ago.

"Tell me more about him. If he advanced so fast, it might indeed be related to detonating his spirit rings!" Without being able to question Su Xing directly, Yu Xiaogang eagerly asked Flender for more details.

Flender didn't refuse, but he had only heard bits of Su Xing's story: "I wasn't there that day, so if you want to know more, ask Zhao Wuji or your disciple, Tang San."

By this time, Tang San and the others had already returned from the Star Dou Forest. Though Dai Mubai was absent, the results hadn't changed much. Oscar had still obtained his flying mushroom spirit ability, Xiao Wu had been taken by Er Ming, and Tang San had encountered the Man-Faced Demon Spider and gained the Eight Spider Lances external spirit bone.

"What? Su Xing defeated a 37th-level Soul Elder?"

"And it was a Soul Elder with a top-tier martial spirit, the Evil Eye White Tiger?"

"A self-created soul skill..."

When Yu Xiaogang learned the full details from his disciple Tang San, he was utterly shocked.

He never expected that the Su Xing he had rejected years ago would become so powerful in such a short amount of time! Even stronger than himself. Even stronger than his prized disciple, Tang San.

Yu Xiaogang knew how formidable Tang San was, yet he couldn't imagine Tang San defeating a 37th-level Soul Elder like Dai Mubai.

The disciple I personally trained... is weaker than the one I turned down?

"Teacher, can you tell how he cultivated so quickly?"

"Does it have something to do with detonating his spirit rings?"

Tang San could understand Yu Xiaogang's surprise—he himself had been astonished that day! Tang San wasn't foolish either and had guessed that Su Xing's rapid advancement might be linked to the detonation of his spirit rings.

"You're perceptive to realize that!" Yu Xiaogang praised Tang San before explaining:

"It's very likely. We all know that soul rings are condensed from soul power, and a soul master gains a significant increase in soul power whenever they absorb a soul ring. I used to believe that a soul master absorbed all the soul power from a ring when they obtained it. But now, it seems that might not be the case."

"Perhaps soul rings still contain a considerable amount of soul power even after being absorbed. Su Xing might have detonated his rings to absorb that power, which explains his rapid advancement."

"If this is true, then it's a genius concept! Sacrificing a soul ring and losing a soul skill, but in exchange for a significant boost in soul power—this could revolutionize the entire Douluo Continent!"

Yu Xiaogang shared his hypothesis with Tang San without holding back.

"For example, a soul master like me, stuck at level 29, could detonate a soul ring to break through to level 30, becoming a Soul Elder!" Yu Xiaogang explained excitedly to help Tang San better understand.

If Su Xing were present, even he would have to admit that Yu Xiaogang's reasoning was spot on.

Su Xing had already proven this, though he hadn't detonated another ring after reaching level 20, unsure if repeated detonations would reduce his control over his soul power.

Yu Xiaogang mistakenly believed that Su Xing's progress was solely due to detonating multiple soul rings.

In truth, Su Xing's rapid advancement was due to his unique training method using electromagnetic forces to strengthen his body, which in turn sped up his cultivation.

Yu Xiaogang's idea could only help soul masters break through a level or two, with no further progress afterward.

It was only beneficial to soul masters stuck at a bottleneck, which was already quite impressive!

Yu Xiaogang could foresee that if he could confirm this theory and spread it, it would cause a huge stir across the Douluo Continent!